A policeman yelled at the NERDS team. “He wants us off the main road,” Heathcliff told the others after searching through an Arabic-to-English dictionary. “He called us filthy gypsies.”

“He’s not very nice,” Duncan said.

Ruby steered her camel down a side street, and the team followed. She led them down several crowded alleyways. Children played while tourists gawked at the buildings and snapped endless photographs. Women carried baskets of laundry on their heads as tiny European cars struggled to get past.

“Badawi’s lab is around this corner,” Ruby said as she hopped off her camel. The others followed her lead. “Intelligence says she has several armed guards, and it would be best if we can avoid them. Wheezer, you and I will need to get changed. Flinch, Gluestick, and Choppers, circle the building and try to find where those guards are positioned.”

The three boys ran off.

“What about me?” Jackson said.

“You can turn around,” Matilda said. After several moments the girls tapped Jackson on the shoulder. He spun around and found them wearing Girl Scout uniforms.

“Again, I missed the briefing,” Jackson said. “What is going on?”

Before they could explain, the boys returned. “There’s two guards on a fire escape on the west side of the building,” Heathcliff said.

“There’s two at the front door,” Duncan added.

“Nothing on the roof,” Flinch said as he opened three juice boxes and sipped them all at the same time. It wasn’t long before he was shaking and giggling from the sugar.

“OK, we’re going to distract as many guards as possible,” Matilda said.

“How do you plan on doing that?” Jackson asked.

Matilda dug into her pack and pulled out several boxes of cookies. “With these.”

“No one can resist Girl Scout cookies,” Ruby said. “As for the rest of you, it looks like the roof is the safest way inside.”

“What about me?” Jackson asked.

“You’ve got the most important job ever.”

Jackson’s eyes popped open. “Really? What?”

“You get to guard the camels.”

Jackson scowled. “I’m not used to sitting on the bench.” Ruby pointed an angry finger at him. “Then you better get used to it. You’re here to observe.”

“Forget it!” Jackson snapped.

“Listen, he can go with us,” Duncan said.

“With us?” Flinch and Heathcliff cried.

“I’ll take responsibility for him,” Duncan insisted.

“If he screws up, it’s on you, Gluestick,” Ruby said.

“No worries,” Duncan said. Heathcliff shot him a murderous look, but he kept his mouth closed.

“All right, let’s go kidnap us a scientist,” Flinch said as he clapped his hands.

The girls headed for the front door, while the boys circled around the back of the building.

“So, how do we get up to the roof?” Jackson asked, eyeing the building. It was easily ten feet tall. “There’s no rope in my pack.”

“Like this,” Flinch said as he grabbed Heathcliff and tossed him high into the air. Jackson watched as the bucktoothed spy landed nimbly on the roof of the building.

“No way you are doing that to me!” Jackson said. It looked more terrifying than the rocket.

“It’s really safe,” Duncan said, just before he was tossed as well.

“He’s right,” Flinch said. “I’ve only crippled three people. That’s a very good percentage.”

“Now, let’s talk about this,” Jackson said, but a moment later the boy’s hands hefted him off the ground and flung him high into the sky. Flinch’s toss was perfect and Jackson came down on the roof like a feather. A barfing, crying feather—but a feather nonetheless.

Flinch landed beside him, grinning from ear to ear. “Fun, huh?”

The other boys pulled off their desert clothes, revealing black bodysuits covered in zippered pockets. Duncan took out a pair of goggles, slipped them over his eyes, and looked down at the roof.

“The girls are having some luck. The guards are gone from the fire escape. I’m detecting two people in a lab on the eighth floor. Braceface, want to take a look?” He handed the goggles to Jackson.

“Stop calling me Braceface,” Jackson said as he slipped them on and looked down. He could see red silhouettes shaped like people rushing about inside the building. The X-ray sensor goggles were amazing. “So, how do we get inside?”

Heathcliff gestured to a fire escape door on the roof. “Duh!”

Jackson also pointed to the huge lock on the door. “Double duh!”

“I’ll take care of that,” Flinch said, turning the dial on his harness. He ripped the door off its hinges and tossed it aside like a scrap of paper. “Ta-da!”

The four boys hurried though the door and down the stairs.

“She’s two floors down,” Duncan said.

“Pufferfish, how’s the cookie sale going?” Heathcliff said.

“Very well,” a voice echoed inside Jackson’s head. He recognized it as Ruby’s.

“I heard her in my head,” Jackson cried.

“Communications are linked through the chip inside your nose,” Duncan explained. “If you need to talk to one of us, just focus on our faces in your mind. The chip does the rest.”

The boys continued down to the eighth floor of the building and slipped into the hallway. Before they had a chance to regroup, a guard appeared. Luckily, the team leaped into an empty room before he spotted them.

“Flinch, you and Gluestick go after Dr. Badawi,” said Heathcliff. “I’ll stay here and babysit the dead weight.”

The two boys raced into the hallway and vanished, leaving Jackson and Heathcliff alone. They sat in silence for a long time until Jackson’s curiosity got the best of him.

“Why do you hate me so much?”

“As if you have to ask,” Heathcliff said.

“Actually, I do have to ask. That’s why I’m asking.”

Heathcliff let out an impatient sigh. “NERDS is an organization like no other, because its members are chosen for their skills and abilities.”

“And you don’t think I have skills and abilities,” Jackson said. “I’m a star athlete.”

“So what? Who cares if you can throw a football? The world is not saved by touchdowns—it’s saved by ideas. This organization has always had an elite membership. Our members go on to be diplomats, scientists, and inventors—very few of them spend as much time on their hair as you do. Your very existence here is a slap in the face to every person who has ever risked his or her life as a member of this team.”

Jackson felt his face flush. “Brand seems to think I have potential.”

“Agent Brand sees himself in you,” Heathcliff replied. “But like you, he could never have been one of us. We’re the guys they call when people like Brand can’t get the job done.”

Jackson looked away. He didn’t want Heathcliff to see that his words had hurt him.

“It’s all clear,” Flinch said in Jackson’s head. “I’ve got the guard under control and Gluestick is on his way to pick up the package.”

“Good,” Heathcliff said.

“Sit tight and we’ll be back to get you,” Flinch replied.

“Choppers to the School Bus,” Heathcliff said out loud. A moment later, Jackson heard the lunch lady’s gravelly voice.

“School Bus is here.”

“Gluestick is retrieving the package. Request extraction,” Heathcliff said.

“On our way, kid,” the pilot replied.

While this conversation was taking place, Jackson heard something in the distance. It sounded like a heavy machine coming in their direction, loud and fast. He stood up and went to the window. As he peeked outside, a helicopter flew directly over the building.

“Uh, any idea who that is?” Jackson said. He studied the helicopter. It didn’t have any markings on it at all.

Heathcliff rushed to the window and craned his neck to see the new arrival. “I don’t have a clue. Team, we have an unidentified helicopter in the area. Gluestick, do you have the doctor?”

There was a brief pause and then Duncan’s voice could be heard. “Not yet. Whoever it is, I recommend you engage. It will give us more time to acquire the target.”